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The Universality of Economics and Cultural Diversity

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2024

Alain Bienaymé
Alain Bienaymé*
Affiliation:
University of Paris IX-Dauphine
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Abstract

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The very diversity of cultures impels the economist to respect a principle of modesty when it comes to specifying the degree of universality to which the science of economics can lay claim. In considering this issue, this paper: a) criticizes the ambition of certain forms of economic thought to arrive at truths which are universal, and b) explores the modes by which contemporary economic science participates in a renewed pursuit of a universalist doctrine. It concludes that the logic of economic rationality implies a representation of the world that is incompatible with the diversity of cultures. At the same time, such diversity should not be raised to the status of absolutes. Combining difference and unity is a major challenge for current economics.

Type
Articles
Information
Diogenes , Volume 55 , Issue 3 , August 2008 , pp. 47 - 54
Copyright
Copyright © ICPHS 2008

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